The big carp

A thing of mystery that haunted your local lake and at a size that you could barely imagine but if you were stealthy and lucky, you might occasionally get a rare and unforgettable glimpse of one of these magnificent creatures as it swam past on a hot summer's afternoon or evening.

Seemingly the target of equally mysterious, earthy types that hid away in the depths of night, well before the creature comforts were available off the shelf, in pursuit of the impossible.

At least that's how I saw it.

Fast forward to now and it seems to have become an industry, stripped of mystique and where expectations of certain weights qualify both the angler, and the venue, as capable.

By comparison of now and then, what do you think in general angling terms?

I think that it's very easy to get a very skewed impression. What I see in the media, and on easily accessible waters, is a world away from what I've seen elsewhere.

There are still plenty of carpers quietly going about their business. They aren't shouting about it, they aren't publicizing. Plenty are avoiding circuit waters and widely known big fish. Some of them are hoping for an unknown monster from a disregarded water. Others are fishing for relatively modest fish on waters that'll never attract huge interest.

There used to be a lake many years ago now sadly filled in and a housing estate built where it was that held carp of a size that in those days were considered by us kids a gigantic this was in the early 60s.

It was where i caught my first double which I caught on floating crust at night sitting on my basket with the bale arm open and the line between my fingers, I admit to nodding off now and again but almost falling off my basket always woke me with a start.

Fast forward some 50 odd years and how things have changed, gone is a lot of the mystery of what swims in a water (the one mentioned above actually held a 30 plus as we found out when it was drained and netted) fish have names big fish are known about by all and sundry.

There have been some massive strides in tackle and tactics to do with catching carp, big fish are more available, long sessions by the water are certainly more comfortable than the "old days"

I still see some very good anglers fishing for carp but I fear that some of the modern carp tackle and rigs have made some anglers lazy in that they wont take the time they should to learn more than can be read in a book or magazine they the read about how to do it buy the tackle turn up at a lake chuck out and expect to catch, some do and some don't of those that do some will carry on fishing in that one way others will have their stuff on e bay within 6 months after becoming bored, of those that don't catch some will want to learn why and some will go on to become good and knowledgeable anglers the other will join those with their stuff on e bay or move to another branch of angling.

Overall I believe that the general standard of anglers fishing for carp has dropped from what it used to be, there are many more carp about and access to big carp is much easier than years ago, I am not saying that the carp angler of years ago were better anglers than some of todays but they were prepared to work harder at it than most would be today, all just my opinion of course.

Not sure how for back 'then' is Steve but during the 50's when I first fished for carp with my dad the Colne valley pits had been recently dug (many were still working pits into the 60’s) and even Savay (which was two lakes then before they dug through the middle to make the islands) only contained small recently stocked fish.

We used to travel to Aldermaston Lake for the 'big' fish and then all the way to Billing from the late 50's and the 60's. Billing was a rock hard, gin clear, pond weed endowed pit with many distractions and all the fun of the fair but you could catch 20lb+ carp there if you put in the effort (a 42lb’er was taken whilst we were there in the late 60’s). No wonder big carp were thought difficult to catch then with the end tackle that was available at the time..............

I use to fish a Reservoir in Cheshunt ( Herts) in the 1960tys where the Carp grew big compared to the Epping forest Pond I was use too ?

I also fished the Kent Pits and Billing, plus Harlestone where the Carp grew bigger than the Carp in the Pits of the Lea Valley.

I caught a Huge Carp from a Reservoir in Chingford some 25 years ago, better noted for its Roach and Perch in the 1970tys.

It's a progression, every carp I caught have some sort of memory for me, the ones caught on Bolt Rigs and Boilies, are no more important than the ones caught on balanced crust or Butter Beans.

The methods change, but the anglers is the same !!

Bob

There is little magic for me when I see photos of large carp caught, doesn't give me the thrill like that of your recent 2lb plus perch from the river.

There are as always exceptions and when I saw this image of a friend of a friend catching this fish from a stretch of the Thames I fished as a lad (Teddington) it did make think "wow".

Binka - an interesting thread. I caught my first carp in 1975 and fished for them on mainly the Colne Valley pits until about three years ago (mainly roach fished in the colder months).

Even in 1975 there was very little carp tackle or carp baits in tackle shops. There were no boilies for sale then, you made them yourself and the hair rig had not been invented.

Carp, of course were around in limited numbers and carp waters were very few and far between. A 20lb carp was a very big fish then for most waters.

Now carp are everywhere, in virtually all waters. Carp, for instance, have always been in the Thames but in two occasions I have landed nine carp from the Thames in a single day. In fact carp are in so many waters now they are almost a pest!

I caught my first forty in 1991, then a 40lb carp was still quite a rare fish, now they are commonplace with fifties in lots of waters.

Yes, unfortunately the mystique has largely gone. There are still untapped waters which are only lightly fished and the carp are all not known and named!

For me the height of carp fishing was in the first half of the nineties, rigs, baits and methods were still being developed. Now you can buy ready made rigs (I shudder), baits, flavours, bait boats, echo sounders, in fact everything for the instant carp angler.

I really feel sorry for those anglers that come into our pastime and immediately just fish for carp. Forget carp, try catching big roach, now there is a challenge!

The monster mystery many people search is not as far away as you might think…its just across the channel.

The reality is when you have it, its not as magical, easy or rose tinted as some might make out.

There is ALLOT of hard work involved in tracking down big fish from waters with no or little fishing pressure…for a start you don’t even know if the fish you are after is even there and in many cases there is no internet forum, DVD, fishing mag or even grapevine whispers to fall back on. The only way to know is to find out for yourself . And it aint easy !

…But no way would I change it either.

binka said:

stripped of mystique

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That's it for me. I'm old enough to remember when the capture of any carp was something really special (in the circles I moved in anyway).